Rams Face Bears, Tigers at Las Vegas Invitational

FORT COLLINS, Colo. – Colorado State will play back-to-back games in Las Vegas, Nev., this weekend, starting Friday night against Mercer. The Rams will finish the weekend facing Auburn on Saturday. Both games will be streamed on FloHoops as well as the radio on Power 102.9 and the Varsity Network app.

THIS WEEK
Friday, Nov. 25 – vs. Mercer (The Mirage, Las Vegas) / 9:00 PM MT
Saturday, Nov. 26 – vs. Auburn (The Mirage, Las Vegas) 4:30 PM MT
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RAMS NOTES

Hot Hand
Senior Meghan Boyd had hot hands recently, currently No. 10 the nation from behind the arc shooting 60 percent. Destiny Thurman follows at a 53.3 clip, which is No. 24 in the country. The Rams as a whole lead all teams shooting 51.1 percent from downtown.

Ratio'd
Colorado State doesn't turn the ball over much, while also dishing out assists. The Rams enter the weekend leading the country in assist/turnover radio at 2.46. McKenna Hofschild is No. 2 in the country with a 9.00 mark, having just four turnovers in four contests. Last season she finished the year at No. 5 in the nation with a 3.00 ratio.

Make It A Double
Senior McKenna Hofschild recorded her first double-double the season last week against Montana, dropping 18 points and dishing out 11 assists. She reached double-figures in scoring before the half and secured the double-double in the third quarter. It was her fifth double-double of her career and first of the season, even though she was close in the opener against BYU with 18 points and nine assists.

Weekly Honors
After the season-opening week, McKenna Hofschild and Hannah Ronsiek earned Mountain West weekly honors. Hofschild earned her fifth award of her career after being named the Player of the Week, while Ronsiek was named Freshman of the Week for the first time.

Getting Benched – The Good Kind
Colorado State started the 2022-23 season last Tuesday, exploding in the second half outscoring BYU, 47-23, to cruise to an 82-62 win. The Rams' bench did a lot of the heavy lifting – scoring 40 points, nearly the total of the Cougars starters. CSU trailed at the half 39-35, but flipped a switch in the second, hitting 8-of-12 from three to break the opener wide open. Cailyn Crocker led the bench players scoring 17 points – second most on the team behind McKenna Hofschild with 18.

Watch Lists
McKenna Hofschild has been named to a pair of Preseason Watch Lists:
Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Preseason Watch List
Recognizes the top player in women's NCAA Division I college basketball at a mid-major conference
Nancy Lieberman Award
Recognizes the top point guard in women's NCAA Division I college basketball

Coming Back
The Rams return seven from the 2021-22 roster, including three starters with McKenna Hofschild, Kendyll Kinzer and Petra Farkas. Sydney Mech and Cali Clark also recorded a start a season ago. Hofschild returns for her senior season after leading the Rams and the Mountain West in scoring with 557 points. She also averaged 16.9 points per game and dished out 6.5 assists per game – No. 2 and No. 1 in the league, respectively.

New Faces
Colorado State welcomed five transfers and four freshmen to the team during the offseason, bringing its newcomers total to nine. Transfers include Kiya Dorroh (Mizzou), Destiny Thurman (UTEP), Joseana Vaz (Casper College), Cailyn Crocker (Cal) and Meghan Boyd (Denver).

2021-22 Review
Colorado State finished the 2021-22 campaign with a 21-12 overall record, including a 9-9 mark in Mountain West play. The Rams made a run in the conference tournament, advancing through the No. 2 and No. 3 seeds to reach the Championship game. CSU returned to the postseason, appearing in the WNIT and faced Portland State suffering a loss.

Opponents At A Glace
Mercer enters Friday's game 2-1 after a pair of victories at Middle Tennessee and Georgia Southwestern State. The Tigers opened the season against the Blue Raiders, sneaking out a 76-75 victory as Summah Evans hit a buzzer beater. Mercer's lone loss is at Wake Forest last week, 70-45. Amoria Neal-Tysor leads the team averaging 16.3 points a game, followed by Erin Houpt at 10.7. Jaron Dougherty and Brittany Reeves handles the paint, pulling down 6.3 and 6.0 rebounds a game, respectively.

Auburn begins the weekend 3-1 and will face Indiana on Friday night before playing Colorado State on Saturday. The two games are the first away from Auburn, Ala., and will the only ones the Tigers will play away from their court In the non-conference schedule. Aicha Coulibaly leads Auburn averaging 18.8 points per game, nearly doubling her teammates. Coulibaly also handles the glass, grabbing a team-high 7.3 boards a game.

Series History
Colorado State will face both Mercer and Auburn for the first time in program history. The Rams will also play a team from the SEC for just the third time since joining the Mountain West. CSU faced Mississippi State earlier this season for the first time and for just the second time seeing a SEC foe since 1999.

UP NEXT

Tuesday, Nov. 29 – at Northern Colorado (Bank of Colorado Arena) / 6:00 PM
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